GIRLS' BASKETBALL: GROWING APART : INJURIES KEEP HART TWINS FROM COMPETING TOGETHER.

Byline: Scott Magoloff Daily News Staff Writer

For the past three weeks, Emily Reyna has been experiencing sharp pains that knife their way up and down her legs.

Reyna, an All-Foothill League selection last year as a junior for the Hart High girls' basketball team, learned the sobering news through a recent MRI. She has two herniated discs in her lower back and will miss the rest of the season.

The news is sobering for Indians coach Dave Munroe, but what concerns him more is that it appears to be a ripple effect that runs in the family.

Emily Reyna's fraternal twin sister, Renee Reyna - the two were born eight minutes apart - was a fast-improving sophomore two years ago for Hart.

``At the end of that season I started feeling the pain down my leg and that spring I had surgery,'' Renee said. The procedure repaired two herniated discs - the lowest in the back.

Emily's MRI revealed that her injury is exactly the same as Renee's.

Because of Renee's surgery, she missed most of her entire junior season, returning for the league portion but only seeing limited action. That left Emily with the bulk of the ballhandling duties and she ended the season as an all-league selection. But Munroe has been unable to prosper from having the pair on the court simultaneously.

``The main reason we're 6-7 this year is they're not together,'' Munroe said.

The predicament is all too unfamiliar for Emily and Renee. They share so many bonds. They look and talk alike and socialize with the same group of friends. They have remarkable GPAs - Renee has a 4.67, Emily a 4.56. They will attend Stanford in the fall.

And, of course, they both have the same herniated discs. The resulting limited playing time together hurts just as bad.

``This year was our last and we wanted to play together,'' Renee said. Just as the words ``play together'' formed on Renee's lips, Emily spoke them as precisely the same moment. They often say the same things at the same time and finish each other's thoughts.

One of the things they can't get a grasp on is the nature of their back problem. Some doctors have told them their condition is hereditary, others disagree. The good news is Renee's recovery; she had surgery in March 1997 and returned to full health by last summer.

Renee is averaging five points and nearly four assists per game, with a high of 11 assists, which is thought to be a school record. A thin bench has made it difficult for Munroe to take Renee out for so much as a rest.

While Emily watches Renee on the court, she sees her future. Emily finds out in the coming weeks if she will need the same surgery as Renee. And, while she is fearful of the procedure, she takes solace in her sister's recuperation.

The extra wear and tear from having to play so much in Emily's absence does cause the occasional ``flare up,'' Renee said. And because of the relative newness of her recovery, each twinge she encounters in her back - no matter how small - instills some fear the injury will recur, even though she knows that fear is largely unfounded.

``After surgery, the doctor said there was a 2 percent chance of reoccurrence, but then, I don't know if it's genetic or not,'' Renee said.

As the pair of hard-luck athletes prepare to embark on a new challenges at Stanford, they speak of new independence.

``We're really close, but not attached at the hip,'' Emily said. ``There's going to be a time when we separate, just not next year.''

As a representation of the bonds they share, Emily carried Renee's school books for about five months after her surgery, as Renee was not allowed to by doctor's orders. There was never a question; Renee couldn't carry her books, so Emily picked them up.

Should Emily drift down the same path previously traveled by Renee, perhaps even another display of sisterhood would unfold as the pair stroll along a perfectly manicured Stanford walkway, Emily to one side, Renee to the other, with an extra backpack slung across her shoulder.

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PHOTO Hart High senior basketball players Emily, left, and Renee Reyna have seen limited time on the court together due to shared back problems.

Shaun Dyer/Daily News